OXFORD, Miss — UPDATED: Seven Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity members have been arrested in Oxford, Mississippi, and charged with cyberstalking.
Oxford Police said on November 2, 2021, investigators got a report of cyberstalking through group messages and social media. Police did not release details on what the cyberstalking entailed, but The Clarion Ledger reported the charges are related to a hazing investigation at the University of Mississippi's Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity chapter.
The chapter was suspended last month until 2025 due to hazing.
Investigators said a month after the initial report, seven men were taken into custody and charged with felony cyberstalking.
Bond was set at $5,000 each for the following men:
- Nicholas Reynolds, 22
- Wyatt Johnson, 20
- Peyton Newcomb, 20
- Christian Parten, 20
- Walker Holden, 19
- Cole Goretski, 20
- Miles Baker, 19
Police said the investigation is ongoing, and they may release more information in the future.
We reached out to the University of Mississippi. Lisa Stone, Strategic Communications Director at Ole Miss, confirmed the seven men were members of the Pi Kappa Alpha chapter at the school in Fall 2020, when the chapter was cited for hazing violations. Two of the men, Reynolds and Newcomb, were also on the chapter's roster for Fall 2021, before the chapter's suspension.
Stone sent this statement: "The university is aware of the charges and is cooperating with investigators and reviewing internally, but we cannot comment on an active criminal investigation. As is evidenced by the suspension of all operations of the Gamma Iota chapter of Pi Kappa Alpha of the University of Mississippi effective until May 1, 2025, hazing and related behavior, including cyberstalking, that put student health and safety at risk are contrary to the University of Mississippi Creed and will not be tolerated."
